“UFC 129 Prelims” Will Open for Georges St-Pierre and Jake Shields

As expected, the UFC announced Thursday Spike TV will kick off their “UFC 129: St-Pierre vs. Shields” festivities with a pair of free preliminary bouts. “UFC 129 Prelims” on August 30th will feature Nate Diaz vs. Rory MacDonald, as well as Sean Pierson vs. Jake Ellenberger.

Diaz is one of the sport’s most electrifying competitors, having won either “Fight of the Night” or “Submission of the Night” in six of his last nine Octagon outings. The controversial welterweight is looking to bounce back from a unanimous decision loss to Dong Hyun Kim at UFC 125.

MacDonald, who trains with welterweight king Georges St-Pierre at the Tristar Gym in Montreal, won his first 10 pro fights. Six of those wins came via 1stRound submission.

Pierson has won his last six contests, including a decision victory over Matt Riddle last December at UFC 124.

Ellenberger is riding a three-fight winning streak, with his most recent W coming in a split decision victory over Carlos Eduardo Rocha at UFC 126. The Reign Training Center representative took this scrap on just 17 days notice after Brian Foster was forced to withdraw at the 11th hour.

The Spike TV broadcast airs live at 8PM ET/5PM PT, while the pay-per-view broadcast will begin immediately after at 9PM ET/6PM PT. Challenger Jake Shields looks to dethrone Georges St-Pierre in the night’s main event.